Fairness
Proverbs 11:1 A false balance is an abomination to the LORD: but a just weight is his delight.
A false balance is when a person cheats someone using a faulty scale. If I sell you a pound of potatoes, you pay for a pound of potatoes; you expect that in return. But if my scale is purposefully defective, and you only get half a pound, I’ve done a terrible thing. I lied by telling you I’ll sell you one thing and not provide it. You were deceived with a scale that ought to represent something true and dependable. I’ve coveted your goods, stolen from you by taking money for something I did not provide. It’s wicked from start to finish. Our God is faithful, good, and holy, and a false balance is contrary to His ways and harmful to His creatures. It is a curse and a blight upon society at large. When the common, agreed-upon standard is eroded, it hurts the public’s trust in anything. That’s why it’s frustrating when you see politicians break the law and get a stern warning that would land me and you in a prison cell. When there is injustice in the land, people lose all trust, and society starts to break apart.
A just weight is God’s delight because it’s true. It’s an agreed-upon standard that we all judge by. The playing field is level, and we play by the same rules.
In our dealings with people, we should always be accurate and represent everything fairly. When we sell someone something, it ought to be what we say it is. We shouldn’t try to deceive people or pull a fast one over on someone else.
I should not judge my enemy by one standard and my friends by another. My fairness should not be flexible and pliable, depending on who I’m dealing with. When we judge other people’s doctrines, we should be fair to what they believe. I should not expect someone to deal with my doctrine with open-mindedness, but then think it is acceptable to call them names and accuse them of saying things they don’t say.
The Scripture is my balance. I should weigh my actions, doctrine, and dealings with others by the standard of God’s Holy Word. In Leviticus 19:33-35, the Lord instructs the Israelites how to treat the foreigner who comes to their land. The law said to love him as thyself; for ye were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.” The Israelites were a foreign people and were treated poorly. They should remember that and treat others like they would have liked to be treated, and part of that is fairness with judgment.
The Lord is righteous in all His judgments. That’s bad news for a guilty person. The wages of sin is death. But in God’s mercy, He sent His Son to die as a substitute, to pay the debt of divine justice for all who come to Him in faith.
